Page 39 of The Duke of My Desire

He reached across the table and squeezed her hand, and although it was brief and reluctant, she finally gave his hand a squeeze back. She wasn’t pleased, but she had agreed to his terms, and he would have to be satisfied with that.

“Well, then…” She cleared her throat. “If you will not have Jane, I suppose we must begin the search for a new lady to be your bride. There are some very lovely girls making their come-out. Lady Harrigan’s daughter, for one⁠—”

“Mother…”

“What? I have agreed to let you choose your bride, but there is no reason I cannot help the process along, is there?”

Gregory sighed. “I am not going to marry Lady Harrigan’s daughter, either,” he said.

“Why not? What’s wrong with Lady Harrigan’s daughter?”

“Nothing is wrong with her,” he said. “Except…” He leaned back in his chair and raked a hand through his hair. “Except she isn’t the woman I want. She isn’t Justina.”

The dowager duchess stared at him, her mouth twisting in a telltale sign of displeasure. “You cannot be serious, dear. You’ve only just met her, and she is hardly an appropriate choice. I think⁠—”

He sent her a quelling look, and she broke off with a grimace, as if it physically pained her to suppress an opinion. “I think,” she began again, “that your Lady Dunne is a lucky woman to have earned your admiration.”

Your Lady Dunne. The words pulled at his heart, making his chest ache, and he scrubbed a hand down his face as a helpless feeling settled over him.

“I wish she was mine,” he said. “I asked her to marry me today, but she declined.”

“Declined?” His mother was outraged. “Is the girl daft? You’re a duke, for pity’s sake.”

Gregory gave her a faint smile. “I think she’s still in love with her husband.”

She hadn’t given a reason for refusing him, but he suspected her feelings for her husband had something to do with it. And that was what made this all so frustrating. How could he compete with a dead man’s memory?

His mother hummed thoughtfully as she studied his face. “And you’re in love with her, I suppose?”

His heart clenched as if answering for him. “I am.”

“Well, then, I have only one thing to say...” She reached across the table to cover his hands with hers. “Do not give up on her. Not just yet.”

Gregory blinked at his mother, stunned by her words. He would not have been more surprised if she had hopped on her chair and danced a jig.

“I...what?”

She chuckled at his shock. “Come, Gregory, I am not entirely without feeling.”

“I know that, but...” He shook his head. “I was in love once before, if you remember. I wanted to marry Lady Olivia, and you knew that, but you were hardly supportive.”

The duchess sat back in her chair with a heavy sigh. “That is because I never felt she was the right woman for you. And I was correct, wasn’t I?”

It was his turn to sigh. “You were.”

“Of course I was. Now, I haven’t met your Lady Dunne yet, and I am not entirely certain I approve of your interest in a widow”—she held up her hand when he made to argue—“but if you love her, Gregory, I will not stand in your way.”

“I appreciate that, Mother, I truly do, but she turned me down.”

“She loved her husband and he died. Perhaps she is scared it will happen again.” She reached across the table to pat his hand. “Do not give up so easily. If you truly love the girl, give her time to change her mind.”

Gregory pressed his lips together as he considered her words. Perhaps she was right. Perhaps not all was lost.

Justina had turned him down, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t change her mind. If she loved him.

If she didn’t, well, that was a different story. He couldn’t make her love him. But if her refusal stemmed from some other reason, perhaps he could convince her to reconsider. Perhaps there was still hope.

“I should return to her soon,” Gregory said, glancing at the clock on the mantel and noting the time was nearly noon. “We still have a day’s journey ahead of us.”